The president of the NDP riding association in Scarborough-Guildwood will press the provincial party to provide “information that is owed” regarding concerns swirling around Adam Giambrone’s candidacy in last week’s provincial byelection.

The “unnecessary” saga between local volunteers and the party played out in the media and caused much of the riding’s local volunteer base to abstain from campaigning, says riding president Viresh Raghubeer.

But Mr. Raghubeer claimed on Monday that the NDP would have faired better in Scarborough-Guildwood, if not for the rift between the party and the riding association.

Maybe I’m crazy, but I think there should have been some communication with the riding association

“Maybe I’m crazy, but I think there should have been some communication with the riding association,” said Mr. Raghubeer, who pulled his support for Mr. Giambrone over concerns that policy was not followed at the July 7 nomination meeting that elected the former city councillor.

Since the onset of the three-week campaign, Mr. Raghubeer and his executive committee have been calling on the party to address fears that 12 out of 32 voters at the nomination meeting were ineligible to participate. The dozen in question were not named on a pre-approved voters’ list, Mr. Raghubeer said.

The runner-up in the nomination, Amarjeet Kaur Chhabra, threatened to seek legal action to revoke Mr. Giambrone’s candidacy, but backed away from those threats after meeting with NDP lawyers. After that meeting, she told the Post there was not enough time to run.

“Those who know me know I’m a fighter. I will continue to fight a flawed and unfair nomination process with all the means available to me,” Ms. Chhabra wrote in a July 19 statement.

But on Monday, she said she had no plans for the near future.

“We’ll see how things unfold,” said Ms. Chhabra, who lost to Mr. Giambrone by a reported four votes.

In a letter to the riding association last month, NDP provincial secretary Darlene Lawson said a full riding membership list would be released “once byelections are over and staff resources permit.”

Those who know me know I’m a fighter. I will continue to fight a flawed and unfair nomination process

The “unsatisfactory response” caused many of the dedicated volunteers on the riding association to wash their hands of the campaign, said Mr. Raghubeer, adding that he did not speak to the candidate at all in the weeks leading up to the byelection.

“If [the party] had worked well with the riding association there could have been an opportunity to place higher,” he said, adding that a series of attempts to discuss his concerns with Mr. Giambrone went unanswered.

“We’re wondering if he’s going to approach us at any time, given that he wanted to represent this riding … We’ll definitely be engaging the party to ensure this doesn’t happen again.”

Mr. Giambrone avoided questions on his nomination throughout the campaign, at one point saying he was not interested in discussing details of an “administrative” matter.

Repeated calls and emails to Mr. Giambrone and his press secretary were not returned on Monday afternoon.

Last month, Ontario NDP spokesman Michael Rosenstock said “everyone who voted at the nomination meeting met the requirements of the vote.”

But when asked several times to clarify whether that meant each voter lived in the riding and had been a member for the 30-day minimum, Mr. Rosenstock simply repeated the same phrase. He did note that members agreed to destroy ballots and declare a unanimous nomination following Mr. Giambrone’s victory.

The runner-up in the NDP nomination battle in Scarborough-Guildwood is backing away from threats to pursue legal action after a “full and frank discussion” with party lawyers.

Amarjeet Kaur Chhabra who lost the nomination to Adam Giambrone, had expressed concerns over whether 12 of 32 voters were eligible.

She had called on the party to run a new nomination process, but conceded there was too little time before the Aug. 1 provincial byelection.

I remain disappointed in the party

“I remain disappointed in the party,” Ms. Chhabra wrote in a Thursday statement. “On the positive side, many people have reached out to me sharing similar experiences that will lead to change.”

Mr. Giambrone, meanwhile, said he was not interested in discussing details of an “administrative” matter.

Mr. Giambrone, who left city politics three years ago after a sex scandal engulfed his mayoral ambitions, won the provincial NDP nomination, but another candidate who contested the July 7 nomination was threatening legal action against Mr. Giambrone, citing “serious concerns” over the eligibility of a third of the nearly three dozen voters.

“I’m running here in Scarborough-Guildwood. I can’t speak all to the process, but I’m focused here on the by-election,” Mr. Giambrone told reporters Thursday after a Liberal transit-funding announcement, during which he hovered on the periphery. “I’m the candidate for the NDP, everything’s been confirmed.”

He attempted to shift the conversation to the Liberals’ failure to commit $400-million in requested funds to a Scarborough subway, but reporters continued peppering him with questions about his nomination, drawing increasingly irate responses. Mr. Giambrone said the priorities for Scarborough residents were transit and health care.

“Frankly, that’s seriously what I’m going to talk about for the next two weeks, and that is all I’m going to talk about,” Mr. Giambrone snapped. “I’m only going to talk about things that deal with the actual concerns of Scarborough residents… I’m not going to let the residents of Scarborough get sidetracked.”

Chhabra, who lost by an undisclosed number of votes, was contemplating legal action amid concerns over whether 12 of 32 voters were eligible; to qualify, voters must live in the riding and have been an NDP member for at least 30 days.

A spokesman for the Ontario NDP maintains all voters met the requirements.

A would-be Scarborough NDP candidate is threatening legal action against her own party, unless it is able to prove Adam Giambrone’s legitimacy as the candidate in an upcoming provincial byelection.

Amid rising concerns regarding the eligibility of voters at a July 7 nomination meeting that saw Mr. Giambrone win the NDP endorsement in Scarborough-Guildwood, his opponent’s lawyer sent a letter to the party on Wednesday threatening to use legal action to revoke the nomination.

Amarjeet Kaur Chhabra ran against Mr. Giambrone for the nomination and lost by an undisclosed amount of votes. But since last week, executive members of the local riding association have been calling on the Ontario NDP to verify the eligibility of 12 out of 32 voters — almost 35% of the electorate at the nomination meeting.

We have serious concerns as to whether the process … was fair, unbiased

“We have serious concerns as to whether the process … was fair, unbiased and complied with the requirements of Ontario NDP’s constitution,” Ms. Chhabra’s lawyer wrote to NDP provincial secretary Darlene Lawson in a letter obtained by the National Post.

The constitution dictates that any voting member at a nomination meeting must live in the riding and must have been an NDP member for at least 30 days.

Ontario NDP spokesman Michael Rosenstock said “everyone who voted at the nomination meeting met the requirements of the vote.”

But when asked several times to clarify whether that meant each voter lived in the riding and had been a member for the 30-day minimum, Mr. Rosenstock simply repeated the same phrase. He did note that members agreed to destroy ballots and declare a unanimous nomination following Mr. Giambrone’s victory.

“I think that’s an important point,” he said.

Alex Urosevic for National PostAdam Giambrone held a media press conference and meet and greet at a Scarborough Tim Hortons on Eglinton Av, just east of Markham Rd,July 8, 2013. He received the NDP nomination to run in Scarborough-Guildwood in an August by-election.

Ms. Chhabra’s letter gives the party until Thursday at noon to provide proof that “each of those 12 individuals was in fact entitled to vote.”

If not, Ms. Chhabra will use legal action to seek an “urgent order” revoking Mr. Giambrone’s candidacy and calling a new nomination meeting prior to the August 1 byelection, the letter read. The letter claims Ms. Chhabra lost the nomination by a vote of 18-14.

Mr. Rosenstock said the matter had been referred to NDP legal counsel.

Ms. Chhabra is joined in her protest by a group of local riding association members who sent a memo to the party last week hoping to verify the 12 voters’ eligibility.

In her response to the memo, the NDP provincial secretary said a full riding membership list will be provided “once byelections are over and staff resources permit,” according to a copy posted to Torontoist.com.

“[The response] was not satisfactory and it was a bit dismissive,” riding association president Viresh Raghubeer said in an interview Wednesday.

I need the principles of democracy to be upheld

“If the [12] voters are validated and everything is fine, I will help [Mr. Giambrone’s] campaign in a heartbeat,” he said. “But I need the principles of democracy to be upheld. The principles democracy, honesty and transparency are more important than winning a byelection.”

Mr. Giambrone has been campaigning in the Scarborough-Guildwood riding for just over a week — his first foray into politics since 2010, when he finished his term as a Davenport city councillor following a short-lived mayoral campaign marred in scandal.

A spokesperson deferred all questions about the nomination process to Ontario NDP headquarters, saying Mr. Giambrone was focused on canvassing neighbourhoods in the riding.

Mr. Raghubeer says he has asked Mr. Giambrone to address the situation, but has not received a response.

“You do have the influence to ask ONDP to release the info we are asking for,” the riding association president wrote in a Facebook message to Mr. Giambrone. “Why the hesitation? Why the delay? Why are you refusing to address the riding association?”

NDP members in Scarborough-Guildwood are questioning the nomination process that saw former city councillor Adam Giambrone become the party’s candidate in an upcoming provincial byelection.

Executive members of the riding association sent a letter last week to NDP provincial secretary Darlene Lawson, citing concerns about the eligibility of voters at a July 7 nomination meeting. According to the letter, 12 of 32 voters — almost 35% of the electorate — were not on an authorized voting list.

“We know the members, we know the list, and these are names that we have not seen,” a source within the riding executive told the National Post, regarding two groups of voters at the nomination meeting.

The Ontario NDP constitution requires all voters at a nomination meeting to reside in the constituency and to have held membership for up to 30 days.

We know the members, we know the list, and these are names that we have not seen

Mr. Giambrone’s opponent for the nomination, Amarjeet Kaur Chhabra, has also expressed concerns to the party secretary, but said she has “not received satisfactory answers.”

“I am concerned as well that due process was not followed,” she said, adding that she is seeking legal advice.

The riding executive’s letter alleges that “our experienced registration volunteers objected to the membership validity of seven of the 12 walk-in registrants.

“As party secretary, you [Darlene Lawson] overruled them [the registration volunteers] and these registrants were given ballots,” reads the letter, posted on the Torontoist web site and confirmed by the riding source.

Alex Urosevic for National PostAdam Giambrone held a media press conference and meet and greet at a Scarborough Tim Hortons on Eglinton Av, just east of Markham Rd,July 8, 2013. He received the NDP nomination to run in Scarborough-Guildwood in an August by-election.

After further research, the riding executive is particularly concerned with 11 of the 12 walk-in voters, the letter states.

In her response, Ms. Lawson said she was only asked to confirm the identity of one individual.

“I was not made aware of any additional concerns,” she wrote, adding that a full riding membership list will be provided to the riding’s executive “once by-elections are over, and staff resources permit,” Ms. Lawson wrote in the letter, also posted on Torontoist.com.

The response does not fulfill the riding’s request for proof of identity for the 12 walk-in voters, the riding source said.

“[Ms. Lawson] ignored everything to do with the request,” the source said.

Following the vote count, the ballots were destroyed and the riding voted to rule the nomination unanimous. Mr. Giambrone’s campaign in the August 1 byelection marks his return to politics following a three-year hiatus. The former Davenport city councillor, who does not live in the Scarborough-Guildwood riding, left at the end of his term in 2010 after his campaign for major ended in scandal. His office did not respond to an interview request on Monday.

The Ontario NDP would not grant the Post’s request for an interview with Ms. Lawson. “Any issues raised by NDP members are addressed internally as per party policy,” an emailed statement said.

]]>http://news.nationalpost.com/toronto/ndp-members-question-validity-of-adam-giambrones-nomination-in-scarborough-guildwood/feed0stdAdam Giambrone held a media press conference and meet and greet at a Scarborough Tim Hortons on Eglinton Ave. July 8.Alex Urosevic for National Post